Word: yovicsin
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...loss to Cornell was inexcusable. So was the loss to Brown, the Bruins' only Ivy victory last Fall. And much of the blame fell upon the Harvard offensive system, and its founder, coach John Yovicsin. For Yovicsin still clung to the off-tackle, end sweep, halfback option cycle that had brought the Crimson ten consecutive winning seasons and a share of three Ivy titles. The system is viable, provided you have material than can overpower the opposition. If you don't, the opposition needs only to plug the middle or cover the ends at the appropriate downs, and you lose...
...things will be different this Fall, Yovicsin, hampered by a heart condition, will step down as coach at the end of the season. The disastrous results of the 1969 season, and criticism of his conservative strategy, which may or may not have had something to do with his decision, have at least caused him to liberalize his approach to the game. The Flanker-T has been scrapped in favor of a pro offense, which, if it doesn't make things better, will make them interesting, at least. Also, the Crimson will not have to contend with the pressure of defending...
...most tangible difference has been the installation of the new pro-style offense. By its very nature, it will force Harvard and Yovicsin to be more inventive and looser in their play repertoire. Yovicsin plans to pass more than any team in Harvard history, which of course isn't all that earthshaking. But the system will eliminate the predictability that plagued the Crimson last Fall, and replace it with an element of surprise that Harvard will need to have a winning season...
With the installation of the pro system, the lack of capable quarterbacking is perhaps the most immediate concern. The problem was there last year, of course, when Yovicsin used five players and still never found any one of them to be satisfactory. Two of them, Dave Smith and Frank Champi, have graduated. Two more, John O'Grady and Joe Roda, have quit. That leaves junior Rex Blankenship, an adequate passer who started the Yale game last year, as the only man with experience...
...Crimson's problem lies in its abrupt shift to a new offensive system, and its need to use more sophomores in critical positions than it has ever used before. The talent is there, but it is inexperienced, and the depth is questionable. If the Crimson can avoid injuries, if Yovicsin can come up with a steady quarterback, and if the transition can be made to a system oriented toward passing, the relative ease of the Crimson's first three games may provide the offensive and defensive lines with time to make mistakes and be able to learn from them without...